Human Resources / Payroll Business Continuity Plan
UH Emergency Closing
In order to continue to provide service to UH faculty, staff, and students, Human Resources has developed this
Business Continuity Plan to address all areas within its scope, including Benefits, Payroll, Records, Employment,
and Training.
HR Service Center
The HR Service Center will operate as the central information flow for all HR related matters. Employees having
general HR questions should contact the Service Center at 713-743-3988 for assistance.
In the event that the university is closed due to emergency weather situations the HR Service Center will be
staffed by essential personnel to respond to any HR/Payroll urgent matters.
Benefits
Employees having specific questions regarding their health coverage may contact Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Customer Service directly at 1 (800) 252-8039 or through their website at www.bcbstx.com/hs. In order to ensure
that employees are provided the correct coverage information by BCBS, they should provide the following details:
Plan Name: State of Texas Health Select
Group Number: 38000
Individual ID Number (found on the insurance card, or he/she may provide his/her Social Security
Number)
Prescription benefits are administered through Caremark, Rx Group Number 1292. The Caremark Customer
Service telephone number is 1 (888) 886-8490.
Dental benefits for HumanaDental DHMO Plan (formerly Aetna DMO) and State of Texas Dental Choice Plan are
both administered through HumanaDental. Employees having specific questions regarding their dental coverage
may contact HumanaDental directly at 1 (877) 377-0987 Monday – Friday, 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. (Central Time). The web
address for HumanaDental is www.humanadental.com.
Employee Assistance Program benefits are administered through The University of Texas Health Science Center at
Houston (UTEAP). Employees needing assistance may contact them directly at 1 (800) 346-3549 or 1 (713) 5003327 (24/7) or their website at www.uteap.org. They can assist the employee with work/personal issues, financial
issues, wellness assistance, legal assistance, and WorkLife balance training. They can also assist with childcare,
elder care, and stress management. The employee will need to provide them with their personal information.
In the event of a traumatic event/disaster, UTEAP will seek to provide the following to employees and family
members as soon as it is available:
Emergency relief numbers
Shelter and other pertinent disaster recovery information
Articles/resource information regarding stress in relation to the traumatic event
In the event of University closure, the Benefits staff will be available on an as-needed basis at the following
telephone numbers or via e-mail.
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Juanita Virgin
Linda Leggett
Monica Morgan
(713) 743-9915 or e-mail at jvirgin@central.uh.edu
(713) 743- 5743 or e-mail at lleggett@central.uh.edu
(713) 743-5771 or e-mail at mmorgan@central.uh.edu
They will be able to access ERS insurance records to answer questions. Most insurance forms are available on
one of the following sites:
HR Benefits website http://www.uh.edu/hr/
ERS website www.ers.state.tx.us
Blue Cross Blue Shield website www.bcbstx.com/hs
Payroll
The payroll schedule, which provides all payroll deadlines and corresponding pay dates is available on the HRMS/
Payroll website at www.uh.edu/hrms , Payroll Calendar at Payroll Schedule and Pay Dates, respectively.
If the University is closed during a scheduled payroll run, the following steps will be taken by the Payroll staff to
ensure that pay is submitted electronically by direct deposit to employees’ bank accounts as customary.
Active Exempt employees will be paid their regular monthly salary.
Active Non-exempt employees will be paid their regular hourly rate for the number of hours assigned to
them based on their job FTE, adjusted accordingly if not eligible for emergency leave.
If payroll is processed while the University is closed, upon reopening, Exempt employees must submit their
corrected time in Time and Labor and Non-exempt employees will be required to submit corrected timesheets.
Exempt employees will need to report any leave taken during the pay period, including emergency leave
granted for the period of the University closure. Adjustments to leave balances will be done on the first
available payroll cycle following the re-opening of the University.
Non-exempt employees will need to report any leave taken during the pay period, including emergency
leave granted for the period of the University closure.
Non-exempt employees who are required to work or be on call during the period that the University is
officially closed may be entitled to regular pay, in addition to emergency leave. This is discussed in detail
below under “Administration of Emergency Leave.”
In the event of University closure, the Payroll staff will be available on an as-needed basis at the following
telephone numbers and/or via e-mail. They will be able to access the PeopleSoft payroll records to answer
questions regarding pay.
Carla Ponzio
Margaret Busch
(713) 743-8766 or e-mail at cponzio@central.uh.edu
(713) 743-8770 or email at mbusch@central.uh.edu
Employees may also access payroll information from any computer with internet access by logging into
P.A.S.S. The link is www.my.uh.edu .
Note: PeopleAdmin and P.A.S.S. passwords may be reset by HR.
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Records
The Records staff will be available to provide employment verifications for mortgages, apartment leasing, and
other events as needed via telephone and e-mail. Mortgage verifications may be submitted to the Records staff
via e-mail, along with a signed authorization signed by the employee, in order to release salary information. The
Records staff will complete these verifications and e-mail them back to the mortgage company.
For telephone verifications, only the following information will be provided:
Name, as it appears on the employee’s record
Dates of employment
Job title
Employees will not have access to personnel files. In the event of an investigation by a government agency or the
subpoena of a personnel file, the Records staff should be contacted in advance and provided sufficient time to
provide the Office of General Counsel with a copy of all documents for review.
In the event of University closure, the Records staff will be available on an as-needed basis at the following
telephone numbers and/or via e-mail. They will be able to access the PeopleSoft and personnel records to answer
questions regarding employment history.
Billy Taylor
(713) 743-5766 or at email btaylor2@uh.edu
Employees may access vacation and sick leave balances through P.A.S.S.
Employment
In the event of University closure, employment applicants may still connect to and use the UH Employment
Website at http://www.uh.edu/hr/employment/index.htm to search for job postings, update applications, and
apply for jobs. UH hiring managers may also log on to the website here to review applicants and update their
status, as needed. The Employment staff will be available on an as-needed basis at the following telephone
numbers and/or via e-mail. They will be able to access the employment site to answer questions.
Clausezette Davis
Cristina Sanchez
(713) 743-5778 or at email at crdavis5@central.uh.edu
(713) 743-5677 or at email at csanche8@central.uh.edu
Training
The HR Training staff will monitor all UH-HR scheduled training. In the event of University closure, all scheduled
training will be cancelled and rescheduled for a future date. All employees who were enrolled in the affected
classes that wish to register for future class(es) will need to re-register using P.A.S.S. The Training staff will be
available on an as-needed basis at the following telephone number and/or via e-mail.
Cari Baugh
(713) 743-3647 or at email at cbaugh@central.uh.edu
Administration of Emergency Leave
Emergency leave will only be granted to benefits-eligible employees.
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1. In the event of University closure, employees may be granted emergency leave as follows:
Benefits-eligible faculty and staff may be granted emergency leave for any period the University is
closed.
Non-benefits eligible employees are not eligible for emergency leave, as per Texas Government
Code § 661.901 and 902.
2. Emergency leave on an individual basis will be handled in accordance with SAM.02.D.04,
Emergency Leave Policy.
Emergency Leave Coordinated with Leave of Absence
1. If an employee is on a paid leave, he/she may be granted emergency leave for the period that the
University is closed and may not be required to use accrued vacation or sick leave.
2. If an employee is on paid family and medical leave he/she may be granted emergency leave and may not
be required to use any accumulated sick leave, sick leave pool, or vacation. The time that the University is
closed and emergency leave is paid may not count against his/her twelve weeks of family and medical
leave.
3. If an employee is on military leave, he/she may be granted emergency leave. The time that the University
is closed and emergency leave is paid may not count against the 15 days of military leave per year.
4. If an employee has exhausted all paid leave and would be on an unpaid leave the first day that the
University closes, he/she will not be granted emergency leave. If the employee’s leave would qualify for
sick leave pool at the end of a 30-day waiting and their status would change to paid leave, the employee
may become eligible for emergency leave if the University is closed. Emergency leave pay may begin on
the 31st day.
5. Employees who are on workers’ compensation and receiving state warrants are on unpaid leave from the
University and, thus, will not be granted emergency leave. If the employee is released to return to work
and the University is closed, the employee may be granted emergency leave upon receipt of the doctor’s
release to return to work.
Employees Required to Work During University Closure
1. Non-exempt employees who hold essential positions, such as police officers, and who are required to
work while the University is closed may be paid emergency leave and may be compensated for hours
worked.
During the period of University closure, non-exempt employees may be paid emergency leave
based on their FTE and standard hours they would normally work during a workweek without any
overtime.
In accordance with FLSA regulations, any hours worked over 40 during a single workweek will be
compensated at 1.5. FLSA permits public sector employers to give non-exempt employees
compensatory time off in lieu of monetary overtime compensation. Compensatory time must be
given at a rate of one and one-half hours for each hour of employment for which overtime
compensation is required.
Emergency leave does not count towards the 40-hour workweek FLSA requirement.
2. Non-exempt employees who are required to be on-call while the University is closed will receive
additional compensation for hours worked.
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Specific Guidance for Communicable diseases (H1N1 and other Influenza) and Weather related
emergencies
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The president will make the following decisions:
o
o
o
Whether and when to close the university
Whether to shelter or evacuate residential students
When to reopen the university
Employees are expected to follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC)
guidelines and not to report to work when they have symptoms of a communicable illness or
disease such as influenza. They will be charged Sick Leave (in accordance with MAPP Policy
02.02.03). In cases in which a supervisor observes that an employee is ill at work, the supervisor
should excuse the employee from work and, if necessary, request that the employee seek
medical attention. They will be charged Sick Leave (in accordance with MAPP Policy 02.02.03).
The CDC guidelines can be found at: http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/guidance/
Generally, unless the campus is closed, staff are expected to use Sick/Vacation Leave for paid
time off.
Employees should be excused from work and charged Sick Leave to care for themselves or a
member of their household in accordance with the CDC guidelines for communicable illness
without concern for disciplinary action for the absence. Employees impacted by the flu may be
granted a onetime exception to MAPP 02.02.03 which will allow them off work for up to five
days without requiring a doctor’s note.
Current policy:
When the employee is unable to work because of illness, he/she should contact his/her
supervisor at the earliest practical time in accordance with departmental procedures, and the
Leave Request Notification form must be submitted promptly upon return. In addition, a
medical absence of more than three working days requires a written statement from the
employee's health care provider indicating the cause or nature of the illness or other
acceptable statement of the facts concerning the illness.
One time exception:
When the employee is unable to work because of the flu, he/she should contact his/her
supervisor at the earliest practical time in accordance with departmental procedures, and the
Leave Request Notification form must be submitted promptly upon return. In addition, a
medical absence of more than five working days requires a written statement from the
employee's health care provider indicating the cause or nature of the illness or other
acceptable statement of the facts concerning the illness.
Chairs and managers may inform employees of their exposure in the workplace to confirmed,
probable or suspected novel H1N1 flu so that exposed employees can monitor themselves for
symptoms and employees who are at increased risk of severe illness from flu can check with
their health providers. However, such disclosure of information should be conducted in
accordance with the privacy and confidentiality requirements of the Americans with Disabilities
Act (ADA), which stipulates that employers are required to keep all employees’ medical
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information private and confidential. Chairs and managers should not refer to employees by
name nor provide any specific information about employees’ illnesses.
Deans, vice presidents and their designees are responsible for ensuring that essential operations
are maintained during a sustained period of high levels of absences from work.
This guidance may be revised from time to time depending on changing circumstances.
Important Phone Numbers
FEMA Disaster Assistance:
800-621-FEMA
U.S. Department of Labor:
1-866-4-USA-DOL
TX Missing Persons Clearinghouse Helpline:
800-346-3243
Red Cross Disaster Action Teams (DAT’s):
713-526-8300
Red Cross provides the following after a disaster strikes:
• Emergency food and clothing
• Safe, dry, temporary shelter
• Emotional support to victims and families
• Damage assessment to determine the number of homes and families affected
• Information to the media and local government officials
• Emergency communications and inquiries
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FAQ
Any reference to “employee” throughout this section pertains to benefits-eligible employees only, as non-benefits
eligible employees are not eligible for emergency leave.
What do I do if an employee has a child/ren that attends a school which has closed due to the
swine flu epidemic? The child/ren cannot attend daycare because of possible exposure.
In the event of school or campus closings due to communicable illnesses, employees who are unable to
secure alternative childcare arrangements may need to remain at home and be absent from work. For
staff, these paid absences will be charged to vacation leave, unless the supervisor and employee can
make suitable arrangements for temporarily working from home, if the job allows. Children, whether
symptomatic or asymptomatic, whose schools are temporarily closed must not attend work with their
parents.
How do I respond to an employee who reports to work with symptoms of the flu but refuses to
leave work due to a lack of sick or vacation leave?
You are responsible for ensuring a safe working environment for all employees. The employee should
be excused from work and charged unpaid leave to care for themselves in accordance with the CDC
guidelines for communicable illness without concern for disciplinary action for the absence. The
employee will have the option to utilize his/her one time absence from work for up to 5 days without
submitting a doctor’s return to work notice.
I have an employee with an existing medical condition and have a concern that her current work
environment may weaken her immune system. The employee wants to work from home because
of her high risk, should I grant the employee the request?
All questions related to medical accommodations should be direct to the Office of Affirmative Action and
Human Resources. Additional medical information may be required from the employee and, depending
on the employee’s job duties; we may not be able to meet the employee’s request.
What are my responsibilities to my staff, if an employee is tested positive for the swine flu?
Chairs and managers may inform employees of their exposure in the workplace to confirmed, probable
or suspected novel H1N1 flu so that exposed employees can monitor themselves for symptoms and
employees who are at increased risk of severe illness from the flu can check with their health providers.
However, such disclosure of information should be conducted in accordance with the privacy and
confidentiality requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which stipulates that employers
are required to keep all employees’ medical information private and confidential. Chairs and managers
should not refer to employees by name nor provide any specific information about employees’ illnesses.
Should I contact the UHPD on any suspected H1N1 cases?
HR will report all positive H1N1 cases to the Health Center as well as the UHPD.
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